Conveyer driving mechanism



Dec. 7, 1937.

'Filed March 5 1957 2 sheets-sheet 1 e M, M@ mM@ .Wd V+ 4 w 1 1m Y a RR. QN W, IIN@ o NN NN M & ww. m Nw. mw NN Nm m .NN il I! w\ .MLV Q QNm., s xr .\V 2:2, A l ,i mw, /QIIIM .WW ,Sw r www 1| Q J. .M M- E In EQmm ...fk tl N Dec 7, 1937. c. N. BEBINGER CONVEYER DRIVING MECHANISMFiled March 5, 1957 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Patented Dec. 7, 1937 L PATENTOFFICE ooNvEYER DRIVING MECHANISM Charles N. Bebinger, New Philadelphia,Ohio, as-

signor to La-Del Conveyor & Mfg. Co., New Philadelphia, Ohio, acorporation ofv Ohio Application March 3,

12 Claims.

The invention relates generally to driving mechanism for shakingconveyers, and more particularly to. a spring driving mechanism which isquickly and easily reversible.

Prior- .constructions -have provided a spring drive for imparting areciprocating motion to a conveyer for conveying material in onedirection, and such a construction is disclosed in my prior Patent No.2,049,346, issued July 28, 1936, and entitled Spring drive for shakingconveyers.

It is desirable, particularly where the conveyer is used in undergroundwork, to be able to reverse the stroke of the driving mechanism toreciprocate the conveyer for conveying material in the oppositedirection, and none of the prior constructions, of which I am aware,provides a spring drive which is intended to be or can easily bereversed..

Where a shaking conveyer is utilized for conveying coal out of a mine,for example, by reversing the drive the conveyer can be utilized totransport supplies used in mining into the mine.

Accordingly, the principal object of the present invention is to providea reversible spring driving mechanism for a shaking conveyer.

Another object is to provide a spring driving mechanism which can beeasily reversed in a minimum amount of time.

A further object is to provide a reversible spring drive constructed asa unit, and adapted at either end for detachable connection with thedriving crank and connected with a reciprocable support secured to theconveyer.

A still further object is to provide an improved reversible springdriving mechanism which is of simple and rugged construction, and whichis adapted to produce an eflicient conveying action in either direction.

These and other objects are attained by the parts, improvements,combinations and arrangements comprising the present invention which ishereinafter disclosed, described and claimed.

In general terms the invention may be stated as including a spring drivefor imparting reciprocating conveying motion swiveled on amotiontransmitting member connected to a conveyer, and one end of thespring drive being detachably connected to a driving crank, whereby thedrive can be rotated on the motion-transmitting member for connectingthe opposite end of the drive to the crank to reverse the conveyingmotion.

Referring to the drawings forming part hereof- Figure 1 is asideelevation of the improved reversible drive operatively connected to ashaking 1937, Serial No. 128,822

conveyer for imparting reciprocating conveying motion thereto;

Fig. 2fis an enlarged fragmentary section as on line 2-2, Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is a fragmentary section as on line 3 3, 5 Fig. 2;

Fig. 4 is an enlarged fragmentary longitudinal section of the improvedspring drive unit;

Fig. 5 is a transverse section taken on line 5 5, Fig. 4; and

Fig. 6 is a transverse section as Fig. 4.

Similar numerals refer to throughout the drawings.

The shaking conveyer includesv troughs connected end to end for carryingmaterial, two of said troughs being represented at I0 and Il in thedrawings. The motive means for driving the conveyer is preferably anelectric motor (not shown) which is connected in a usual manner througha gear box indicated at I2 to a flanged member I3 on which iseccentrically mounted a driving crank member I4. The driving crank I4imparts reciprocating motion to the spring driving mechanism of theconveyer, and may be termed a reciprocating driving member.

The gear box I2 may be mounted on a suitable base plate I5 extendingunder the conveyer, and a roller I6 for supporting the conveyer troughI0 may be' mounted in a supporting bracket I'I secured on the base plateI5.

A reciprocable support indicated generally at I8 is provided for theconveyer preferably at the joint between troughs I0 and I I. The supportI8 preferably includes a joint member I9 having an upright flange 20 fortting between the adjoining ends of troughs I0 and II and securedthereto by bolts 2| passing through the flange 20 and eye bars 22secured on the ends of the troughs. The joint member I9 is also providedwith arms 23 extending longitudinally under the troughs for abutting theunder sides thereof.

A transverse roller shaft 24 is mounted in depending portions of thejoint member I9 and has flanged rollers 25 'rotatably mounted on itsends by means of suitable anti-friction bearings, for rolling on trackrods 28 located at each side of the conveyer. 'I'he track rods 26 may besecured as is shown to angles 21 supported on a suitable base 28.

The reciprocable support I8 accordingly provides anti-friction means formovably supporting the conveyer as it is reciprocated by the drivingmechanism.

The improved reversible spring driving mechon line 6,-6,

similar parts anism preferably includes a guide rod 30, one end of whichis preferably screwed into the driving crank member I4, and the otherend is slidably mounted in a connecting member 3| which is pivotallymounted on the transverse roller shaft 24. The connecting member 3| ispreferably provided with an upright ange 32 positioned in a slot 33 inthe joint member I9, and the flange 32 is pivotally mounted on theroller shaft 24 by means of a self-aligning bearing indicated at 35.

Thus the connecting member 3| is pivotallyA connected to thereciprocable support I8 for relative movement about a horizontal axis.

A driving sleeve or motion-transmitting member 36 is slidably mounted onthe guide rod 30 and is secured at one end to the connecting member 3|,as best shown in Fig. 3. Preferably the end of sleeve 36 is received inan enlarged bore 31 in the connecting member 3| and is secured to theconnecting member as by welding indicated at 38.

The reversible spring drive unit indicated generally at 46 is swiveledintermediate its ends on the driving sleeve 36, and as best shown inFigs. 4 and 5, the cross head 4I of the unit has an annular journalmember 42 mounted therein, and a collar member 43 surrounds and issecured as by welding to the sleeve 36 and has a journal portion 44fitting within the annular journal member 42, for swiveling the unit onthe driving sleeve member 36. Bolts 45 are provided for securing the`member 43 to the journal member 42, there being suitable passagesindicated at 46 through the collar member 43 and the sleeve member Y36providing for lubrication, and access to said passages is'provided by Vaplug 41 screwed into the collar member 43. l

As shown, the annular journal member 42 is provided at its lower endwith an annular flange 48 which is held in abutment with a shoulderformed in the upper portion of the cross head member 4| by the bolts 45.

A lubricant compartment 49 is formed in the lower portion of the crosshead, and communicates with longitudinally extending bores formed intubular projections 50 at opposite ends of the cross head. Cover plates5| are detachably secured to opposite sides of the cross head by screws52 for giving access to the compartment 49.

A rod 54 is slidably mounted in the bores of the tubular projections 50and extends through the lubricant compartment 49. A thrust member 55 isscrewed on one projecting end of the rod 54 and has a tubular portion 56extending toward the cross head, and a thrust member 51 is screwed onthe other projecting end of the rod and has a tubular portion 58extending toward the cross head.

A relatively strong compression vspring 59 is interposed between thecross head member 4| and the thrust member 55, and the tubularprojection 56 of the cross head and the tubular portion A56 of thrustmember 55 form centering means for said spring 59.

Similarly, a relatively weak compression spring 69 is interposed betweenthe cross head 4I and the thrust member 51, and the tubular projection56 of the cross head and tubular portion 58 of thrust member 51 formcentering means for said spring 69.

Each of the thrust members 55 and 51 are preferably provided with splitlower portions 6I, as best shown in Fig. 6, and clamping screws 62 areprovided for drawing the portions 6I together and clamping them aroundthe threadedl ends of the rod 54. Each of the thrust members 55 and 51are also provided with latch pin apertures 63 to adapt them forselective detachable connection with crank I4 as will be described.

A latch 64 is pivotally mounted on the crank member I4 as at 65, and thelatch 64 preferably has an inverted U-shaped portion 66 which straddlesthe guide rod 30. The U-shaped portion 66 of the latch preferably hasaligned latch pin apertures 61 (Fig. 6) for registering with the latchpin aperture 63 of either of the thrust members 55 or 51, so that alatch pin 68 may be inserted through the apertures 61 and 63 toselectively and detachably connect the driving crank with a thrustmember at either end of the spring drive unit 40.

As shown in the drawings the driving crank is connected to the thrustmember 55 by means of the latch 64 and latch pin 68 and the conveyer isaccordingly adapted to convey material to the right, as viewed in Fig. 1and represented by the arrow.` In operating the conveyerpit isvcustomary to initially adjust thethrust membery 51V by loosening thebolt 62 and taking Vupthe thrust member on the rod 54 approximately 2"to place' the springs B0 and 59 under compressiomfalthough the amount ofadjustment may be varied to obtain the most eiective conveying strokefor a given conveyer'load. f

In Fig. l both springs are shown extended to their normal freeY length,but in operating the conveyer the thrust member 51 is ilrst adjusted toplace the springs under compression, in the manner above described.vSince the spring 60 is much weaker than spring 59, spring 60 will becompressedby a greater amount than spring 59, so that after adjustmentthe distance from the cross head to thrust member 51 exceeds thedistance from the cross head to member 55'by an amount substantiallyequal to the throw or stroke of crank member I4. j

As the crank I4 moves to the left as viewed in Fig. 1 the stroke istransmitted through latch 64, thrust member 55, strong compressionspring 59, cross head 4|, sleeve member 36, andsupport I 9 to theconveyer. On the return stroke of the crank the motion is 'transmittedthrough thrust member 51 and weak compression spring 60 to the crosshead 4I, sleeve 36 and thence to the conveyer.

Due to the unequal strength of springs 59 and 60 movement of theconveyer to the left will be relatively sudden and rapid so as to slideunder material on the conveyer, and movement on the return stroke in theopposite direction will be relatively slow and gradual Vbecause of theweaker spring 60 so as to carry material forward in the direction of thearrow. Thus the springs 59 a'nd 60 impart a differential stroke to theconveyer to give it a conveying action. Y

If it is desired to conveyv material in the opposite direction, that is,to the left as viewed in Fig. 1, it is only necessary to remove pin 68from engagement with thrust member 55, lift latch 64 and swing orswivel'the spring drive unit 40 horizontally about the substantiallyvertical axis of the journal 42, and then insert the latch ypin 68 inthe aperture 63 of thrust memberk 51 for connecting the opposite end ofthe spring drive unit to the vcrank I4.

This operation is easily accomplished by positioning the crank I4 at itsextreme leftposition, and then pulling out the latch pin 68 andreversing the spring drive 46 to bringV the thrust member 51 in positionfor connection with the latch. The crank is then moved to the rightapproaching its extreme position in that direction until the latch pinhole 63 of thrust member 51 registers with the latch pin hole 61 of thelatch, whereupon the latch pin is again inserted to connect the thrustmember 51 with the crank, and the conveying action will be in theopposite direction.

If for example, a shaking conveyer embodying the improved drivingmechanism is being utilized for conveying coal out of a mine, thedriving mechanism can be quickly and easily reversed to utilize theconveyer for transporting supplies into the mine.

The improved driving mechanism includes a reversible spring drive unitwhich is connected to a reciprocable support secured to the conveyer,and adapted at either end for detachable connection with the drivingcrank.

The improved reversible driving mechanism is simple and rugged inconstruction, and is easily adjustable for producing the most efcientconveying action in either direction for a given load on the Conveyer.

I claim:

1. Driving mechanism for a shaking conveyer, including a driving crank,driving means connected to the conveyer, a reversible spring drive unitswiveled on said driving means, and means for selectively detachablyconnecting either end of said spring drive unit to said driving crank.

2. Driving mechanism for a shaking conveyer, including a reciprocablesupport secured to the conveyer, driving means connected to saidsupport, a reversible spring drive unit swiveled on said driving means,a driving crank, and means for selectively detachably connecting eitherend of said spring drive unit to said driving crank.

3. Conveyer driving construction including a driving crank,motion-transmitting means, a reciprocable support secured to theConveyer and connected to said motion-transmitting means, a spring driveunit reversibly mounted on said motion transmitting means, and latchmeans selectively detachably connecting either end of said spring driveunit to said driving crank.

4. Driving mechanism for a shaking conveyer, including driving means, areciprocable support secured to the conveyer, means pivotally connectingsaid driving means to said support, a reversible spring drive unitswiveled intermediate its ends on said driving means, a driving crank,and latch means selectively connecting either end of said unit to saiddriving crank.

5. A reversible spring drive for a shaking conveyer, including drivingmeans adapted for connection to the conveyer, a spring drive unitswiveled intermediate its ends on the driving means for substantiallyhorizontal swinging movement, and each end of said unit being adaptedfor detachable connection to a reciprocating driving member.

6. A reversible spring drive for a shaking conveyer, including drivingmeans adapted for connection to the conveyer, a spring drive unitswiveled intermediate its ends on the driving means for substantiallyhorizontal swinging movement, and latch means for selectively connectingeither end of said unit to a reciprocating driving member.

7. A reversible spring' drive for a shaking conveyer, including drivingmeans adapted for connection to the conveyer, a spring drive unit havinga cross head swiveled on said driving means, a thrust member at each endof said unit,and springs interposed between the thrust members and saidcross head, each thrust member being `adapted for detachable connectionto a reciprocating driving member.

8. Driving mechanism for a shaking conveyer, including a driving crank,a guide rod, driving means slidably mounted on said guide rod, meanspivotally connecting saiddriving means to the conveyer, a spring driveunit swiveled intermediate its ends on said driving means, and means4detachably and selectively connecting either end of said unit to saiddriving crank.

9. Driving mechanism for a shaking conveyer, including a reciprocablesupport secured to the conveyer, a driving crank, a guide rod secured atone end to said crank and slidably mounted at its other end on saidreciprocable support, a driving sleeve slidably mounted on said guiderod and pivotally connected to said reciprocable support, a spring driveunit swiveled intermediate its ends on said sleeve, and latch means forselectively ydetachably connecting each end of said unit to said drivingcrank.

10. Conveyer driving construction including a driving member pivotallyconnected at one end to the Conveyer for relative movement about ahorizontal axis, guide means for said driving" member, a reversiblespring drive unit swiveled intermediate its ends on said driving memberfor swinging movement about a vertical axis, a driving crank, and alatch pivoted on said crank and adapted for detachable connectionselectively with each end of said unit.

11. Driving mechanism for a shaking conveyer,

including a driving member pivotally connected conveyer, a drivingcrank, a guide rod secured atone end to said crank and slidably mountedat its other end on said reciprocable support, a driving sleeve slidablymounted on said guide rod and pivotally connected to said reciprocablesupport, a spring drive unit having a cross head swiveled on sai-ddriving sleeve, a thrust member at each end of said unit, springs ofunequal strength interposed between said thrust members and said crosshead, and a latch pivotally mounted on said driving crank for selectivedetachable connection with either thrust member.

CHARLES N. BEBINGER.

